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(No Model.) Y

J. CURRY. I

EQUIPMENT FOR THBATRIGAL STAGES. No. 364,221! Patented June 7, 1887.

witweoow It PETERS. PholrrLiihogmpher, Washington D. C

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOI-IN CURRY, OF NE\V ORLEANS, LOUISIANA, ASSIGNOR OF ONEFQURTH TO IVILLIS P. SIVEAIMAN, \VILLIAM RICE, AND BARNEY FAG'AN, ALL

OF new YORK, N. Y.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 364,221, dated June 7, 1887.

Application filed March 1-2, 1887. Serial No. 230,672. -(No model.)

To (LZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN CURRY, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Orleans, in the parish of Orleans and State of Louisiana,

5 have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Equipments for a Theatrical Stage; and I do declare the following to beafull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which [0 it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to an improvement applicable to theatrical stages, wherein it is desired to produce an effective representation of an act or any part of an act. It has especial relation to what is known as a negro minstrel stage, the object of which is to surprise and at the same time amuse an audience.

The improvement which I have made will be fully understood from the following description, when taken in connection with the annexed drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view illustrating the wire connections between the several electric lights on the seat-backs and a common source of 2 electricity, and Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrat ing in plan view the wire-connections between the several electric lights on the seat-backs and a common source of electricity. Fig. 3 is a vertical section through one of the hingedback chairs provided with an electric lamp.

Before describing my improvement, I desire to state that I do not confine myself to any definite number of chairs arranged as I shall hereinafter explain, nor to any specified means for lighting the lamps on the said chairs simultaneously, as the gist of my invention consists, essentially, in a gang or series of seats arranged in concentric order, and each individual chair havingau electric lamp applied to 0 its back above the head of the performer.

Referring to the annexed drawings by letters, A indicates a chair, stool, or seat, which may be secured to the floor of a theatrical stage, B, and which is provided with a back, C, of

the form of a clover-leaf or any other suitable shape of an ornamental character. This back 0 is hinged to the body of the seat in such manner that it (the back) can be folded down over the seat horizontally, when desired,

for a purpose hereinafter explained. At a suitable point on the front side of the back 0, when it is erected, I attach an electric lamp of the are or incandescent kinds, as may be desired. This lamp is indicated in the several figures by reference-letter D. The seats thus constructed are arranged for obtaining the best T effect in the following order, to wit: In rear of the proscenium or stage curtain I locate a front concentric tier, E, of seats A, which are the lowest. In rear of this tier of seats I 10'- 6o cate another tier, F, of seats, which are higher than the front tier, and which are so arranged that the front seats are in lines between the spaces between the rear tiers of seats and in close relation thereto. In this manner I may 6 build up tier after tier of seats, forming acornplete bank of seats continued back to the last and highest tier. The hinged backs ofthe several seats are made higher than the heads of the performers, and the electric lights are so arranged on the respective seats that the rays shi ne over the heads of the performers, and not only afford a brilliant light for them, but pro duce a beautiful and novel effect to the audience. All of these electric lights are suitably 5 connected by wires with a common source of electricity whichis located outside of the stage and put under the control of the stage-manager. The said wires should preferably be in communication with a single key, so that the lights can all be ignited simultaneously after the players have taken their seats by a single touch of the said key.

In practice the wires leading from the lamps will be properly insulated and left slack on the 8 5 chair-backs, to allow these backs to be folded and erected, as above described.

Now, my object of hinging the chair-backs is that they may all be folded forward out of the way of the performers while entering be- 96 tween the chairs on their way to take their seats. Each chair-back is erected by the occupant of his or her chair before the electric lights are ignited. When all of the performers are seated, at a given signal the key afore- 5 said is touched and the lights on the backs of the chairs are ignited simultaneously.

In combination with the abovedescribed bank of separately electric-lighted chairs, I may arrange at suitable places between the chairs, or in front or back of them, artificial flowers provided with electric lights for the purpose of illuminating them at the same time that the lights on the backs of the chairs of the performers are ignited.

It is obvious that by modifying the current of electricity the degree of brilliancy of the lights can be regulated for the purpose of producing different effects of light.

Having described my invention, I claim- 1. For the purpose described, a chair having a forwardly-folding back provided with an electric light, as specified.

2. A series of chairs of different heights arranged on a stage in tiers forming a bank, each chair provided with an electric lamp, and all of such lamps electrically connected with a common generator of electricity through the medium of a switclrkey, substantially as described.

3. A theatrical stage consisting of a bank of seats, arranged as described, each seat having a foldingback, and each seat-back having an electric lamp applied to it, in combination with looselyconnected insulated Wires communicating with a generator of electricity, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a seat or chair having a forwardly-folding 0r hinged back, of an electric lamp applied to the back, and an insulated wire establishing electrical communication between said lamp and a generator of electricity, said wire being slackly applied to said seat to allow the folding of the back thereof, substantially as described.

In testimony whcreofl affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN CURRY.

\Vitncsscs:

G J. YnNEwINn, HENRY J. RHoDEs. 

